Bundesliga

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Bundesliga is Germany’s most followed league and Bundes + ligas translates to state + league. There are 18 teams competing for the trophy (the Champions plate or Meisterschale as they locals call it). The top 4 teams at the end of the season automatically qualify for the Champions League while the 5^th and 6^th teams get to feature in the Europa league. There are two relegation leagues in Germany the 16^th team is demoted to the relegation league while the last two teams find themselves in the second relegation league.  

Here’s the confusing part about this league: The 16^th team on the results table has to go to a two game play off with the third team on the 2^nd Bundesliga league (relegation). If they win, they’re secured a slot in the next season’s Bundesliga. If they lose, the opponents take their place and the relegation league will be their fate.

The 2019/20 Bundesliga season was crazy with 9 games being played on the finale day. Overall, I would say that Bayern Monchengladbach made the most out of the forced Corona break as they came back with a bang and secured themselves a spot in the Champions league. They were on a loss/draw streak before this break and the season would have ended differently, for worse, hadn’t there been a break.

Bundesliga results table

Source: flashscore

Werder Bremen weren’t be impressed that they ended going back to The Bundesliga liga relegation league. Things could have been worse. Hadn’t they hammered Cologne; they would have been demoted to the second Relegation league. It was a small win but a win nonetheless. That was an action-packed night with 34 goals. Save for the Leverkusen vs Mainz match that ended in one goal in favor of Leverkusen, all the other matches ended with in at least three goals.

PRO TIP: I always say that there’s money to be made betting on the UN/OV 2.5 market: Especially on make-it-or-break-it high pressure games like in the Finals.

They are usually fast paced and poor passes are bound to be made when players have to make split second decisions. This is how counters happen.

All counterattacks come from mistimed passes

The last few weeks before the season were filled with high pressure moments. Matchdays were every other day and players barely had enough time to try out new strategies. Couple this with the fact that Hansi Flick’s men were only one win away from the trophy. Had they won over Werder Bremen, they would have successfully taken the cup for the eighth time in a row; and the Bavarians did. Bremen were in form too and to be honest this win wasn’t guaranteed.

Bundesliga predictions

Bayern Munich is the most “successful” team in this league with an eight-year winning streak; though I find that they “cheat” their way here by signing in all the good players and having an unfair advantage. They began this “strategy” when Dortmund beat them in the 2011/12 Bundesliga. The managers set their eyes On Dortmund’s best players and had poached  four of them in the next two years.

Red Bull sponsored Leipzig has the potential to dethrone Bayern from this cemented position. They’ve come from hero to hero by making to the Champion’s league and it’s time they asserted dominance by taking this trophy.

When the Covid pandemic brought the world to its knees mid-March this year, all major sporting events across the world (well except those in Belarus and Nicaragua) came to a standstill. Bundesliga was the first league to resume albeit with strict conditions from the Deutsche Fußball Liga that included closed stadiums and mandatory bi-weekly covid testing for all players. No handshakes, no mascots and no team photos. There weren’t many live events at the time and that is how Bundesliga found many new watchers.

Either way, betting on these teams after they came back from the forced break was similar to betting at the start of the league where the days are slow and the games predictable. The matches were also being played behind closed doors and home advantage didn’t amount to anything. The home fans were not there to intimidate the visiting teams.

Fun fact: The Bundesliga league has the highest average fans attendance per match in the world

The closed doors policy definitely took a toll on the loyal fans known for their supportive culture. Borussia Monchengladbach made cardboard cut outs of their fans and you could even have ordered one with your face for just £16.60.

The tough relegation battle

Werder Bremen had spent the last 56 years playing in the Bundesliga and it was all about to come to an end (and it did). They were already four points behind securing the 16^th position (guarantees them a slot in the 1^st relegation league) yet they needed 8 points to be in a safe position. They had been on a 11 games draw/loss streak and their future was bleak. They had only managed to gain one point from their last 6 games and they needed a miracle to stay afloat.

Did you know that no Bundesliga team has ever made a 6-point comeback?

Bundesliga top scorers

Muller was last season’s top sorcerer with 21 goals. Sancho on the other had was second was 16 goals but had beat Muller with assist 17 to 8. I would consider Sancho a better team player.

Frequently asked questions

Is Bundesliga on DSTV?

Sadly, no. Cannel 203 on DSTV (supersport 3) is the only sports channel that covers European leagues comprehensively. However, they do not air Bundesliga or Serie A matches. It would be great if Multichoice upped their game?

Where can I stream Bundesliga matches?

ESPN+ acquired streaming rights for this league this year. It was already wild and now they’ve raised the bar even higher. All the half decent Kenyan bookies like Betika, Betway and SportyBet have free sports livestream for their customers. Unlike Bet365 that requires you to create an account, have a balance and have had placed a bet not more than 24 hours ago to watch their Bundesliga livestreams; these ones are easy going and you’ll always watch matches for free by just logging in.